Seeing the World with God's Eyes...

At the consultation, a well known seminary professor spoke about immigration and migration issues in America. Using a quote from a book by Dorothy Soelle, entitled 'The Silent Cry', she eloquently reminded us not to overlook the invisible in our midst and of the need for the church to stand by it's call to the ministry of hospitality. She quoted "The theology that liberates, the soul that is united with God sees the world with God's eyes. That soul, like God, sees what otherwise is rendered invisible and irrelevant."

I found this incredibly moving. It was a powerful plea that we not overlook, in the midst of political beliefs about how to tackle immigration issues in America, the deeper call as children of God to not render invisible any other child of God, no matter what their legal status in our country may be.

But it got me thinking beyond that as well. I realised that for much of my life I have also feared being considered 'irrelevant', although in very different ways. We live in an astonishingly goal-oriented society--perhaps the most so in the world--and oftentimes it seems that that which does not directly feed into the achievement of the stated goals is deemed worthless and....irrelevant. And so to protect ourselves some of us render those parts of us...the gentle, vulnerable, loving, dreaming, curious, playful, joyful, beauty-seeking parts of us (and our society) invisible. It affects our theology--some seek salvation in the future but not joy, peace and relationship in the present. It affects our foreign policy--we have often sought to dominate for the implacable sake of 'national security', rather than build painstaking relational platforms of common ground and restorative justice. We see this politically in the now oft spoken of deterioration of civility amongst candidates who eschew discourse with integrity in favor of distortion as means of gaining power-- justified by the supposed great ends once they have this power. It seems that over and over again we are told that future goals are more important than the process we engage in in getting there. But is God not as concerned with our present lives as He is with the future? Is He not as much as part of the process as He is in support of the goal? What if God values beauty as much as reason? Grace as much as intellect? Relationship as much as achievement? Is it God's call to us to render also these areas of our lives--which for many of us are dismissed as irrelevant or not as important as things like reason, intellect and achievement--relevant and visible?

Thanks to God, and to my church community, my own fears of 'irrelevance' are fading. In the church--for the first time in my life--I have found a place where my worth is a given simply by my existence. It would be wonderful if family could provide that, but often it does not. The workplace rarely does. Friendship may come closer, but can also fall short. And yet, while the church is also subject to problems, it is predicated upon the incredible worth of every single individual as a beloved of God--no exceptions. That is true hospitality, to which I think the professor was referring in her speech. That is God's almost unfathomable welcome. I am thankful to her for reminding us that we are called to go forth and extend this same welcome and care to all those we meet, whether they be from another country or next door. And I believe that God will also help us render visible and beloved long forgotten areas of our own hearts and souls, that we may live in an ever increasing abundance of life.

And the Walls Came Tumbling Down....

This morning I heard Greg Boyd, an inspiring and transformative evangelical pastor, quoted by a long time respected leader of the Presbyterian Church. She ended her speech with a quote of his about the church needing to be careful that in trying to overcome the world, it doesn't become the world, and that you can not pick up the sword without putting down the cross (I paraphrase!). I suspect there were some in the audience who never thought they would see the day when an 'evangelical' pastor was quoted and admired by a 'mainline' church leader.

Earlier in the day, a passionate community organizer had reminded us that in scripture, it is told that the walls of Jericho only came tumbling down when the people of faith united their voices and shouted at the same time. Can it be that some longstanding walls are starting to crumble?

Safe Harbour

Today I am at a two day consultation on theology and ethics in the context of globalization, migration and environmental sustainability, run by the Presbyterian Church (USA). We have been sitting through a number of astounding panels with people of immense talent and intellect educating us on various issues. But one panel stood out for me so much that I had to rush to share it here.

It seems we have a problem with our ports. When I first saw the topic for discussion, I assumed this would be a discussion of homeland security. In fact, there is another problem, more pressing because instead of being a potential problem it is a deeply actual problem.

The panel focused on the plight of the truck drivers who are hired as independent contractors to carry the loads brought in by the shipping companies to and fro specific destinations. They operate in dangerous conditions, the ports are sources of immense pollution--not least from the diesel fuel used to power the trucks--and the sub-standard wage they receive for this hard labor ensures that they will live in substandard housing--often near the very ports themselves and therefore subjecting their families and children to increased risk of asthma. One panelist informed us that in South Camden New Jersey, 80% of the children have asthma. 80%!!! That is absolutely appalling. A film clip showed us interviews with truck drivers who frequently observed their colleagues in Long Beach California, pulling over to the side of the road to vomit from inhalation of diesel fumes on a regular basis. Needless to say, the pollution is a problem affecting all of us, regardless of religion, race or socio-economic status.

I don't have the answers to this issue, but I was struck by how little I know and understand of what is going on in my own backyard. How many Americans understand the built in costs and ramifications of their consumption? How are we to discern where best to put our resources? I do believe God speaks to us all in different ways, but I felt inspired to do my little tiny part by sharing this situation with whoever may care to hear it. I will post more on this as I receive more information, and I hope to be able to share with you all the words directly from a young man who drives one of the trucks, but for now I simply want to say that this gentleman informed us that as he surveyed his situation at one point, knowing and feeling his own immense helplessness to change things, he prayed that he would someday have the opportunity to share the situation he finds himself in--shared by many others--with a larger audience that might take an interest in helping. And today he sat in front of us and did exactly that. I thank God for having been there, and hope that by passing awareness of this situation onwards, we may all become a part of his story in making the world a more equitable place.

More information to come....for now, you can read more at : http://blog.cleanandsafeports.org/

Discovered by Fire?

As the first post on this blog, it seems appropriate to lay the groundwork by explaining that I've named this post after one of my absolute favorite quotations by a controversial 20th century Christian named Pierre Teilhard de Chardin:

"Someday after we have mastered the winds, the waves, the tides and gravity, we shall harness for God the energies of love. Then for the second time in the history of the world, man will have discovered fire."

What captured me then, and still captures me now, about this quote is the reminder of the unlimited potential, indeed power (if that word were not so laden with negative connotations), that lies in Love. But interestingly, when I first came across this quote (and clipped it out) in a secular magazine, the words 'for God' had been taken out, and replaced by the ever innocent "..." --presumably so as not to offend those who believe in Love but do not believe in God. At the time, I didn't even think to wonder what words had been taken out, assuming they must have been irrelevant to the overall meaning.

When I re-visted this clipping recently, after having come to believe in Christ and embracing the Christian journey several years ago, I found I had an ambivalent sense about this statement--drawn as I still was by the power of Love, but hesitant of mankind's ability (or right) to harness that energy for his own desires and machinations. So I looked up the original and found the complete text. Ahhh, put the missing words back in the quote and it makes great sense again. Now it leaves me only wondering if in the end can we really say that we harness love and discover fire....or will it ultimately be more truthful to say that we are harnessed by Love and discovered by fire?

More importantly than my own ponderings, however, this discrepancy in quotation shows that there are those (and I could have once counted myself among them) for whom the word God is immensely troubling, while the word 'love' remains pure. And yet we are told that God is love (I John 4:8). When secular magazines are quoting Christian mystics without reference to God, we see that we have come to a time and place where people are shying away from points of division while still trying to reap the hope contained in the original vision. The danger here is that in attempting to rid ourselves of the points of division, we also lose the point of genesis of the whole vision. My hope is that we will come back to these important discussions...not shying away from conflicts but looking at them directly, authentically, compassionately and lovingly...trusting that there is always a greater place and Truth to which we are being led.